


Ghosts From the Not So Distant Past

by nekocrouton



Category: Uncharted (Video Games)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Chance Meetings, Conversations, Gen, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-23
Updated: 2016-10-23
Packaged: 2018-08-24 07:07:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,016
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8362315
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nekocrouton/pseuds/nekocrouton
Summary: For some reason I thought about what if Sam and Nathan happened to meet up with Nadine after the events of the fourth game, and then this happened.  Nathan is out visiting Sam in Portugal, and they happen to come upon no one other than Nadine Ross.  Mentions of past Nadine/Rafe.
This isn't my first foray into Uncharted fic, although it's the first one under my main account.





	

“Well this place sure is quaint,” Nathan commented as he and Sam casually strolled through the crowded streets of the small, Portuguese market.  They both definitely stuck out like sore thumbs among the locals, but it seemed like the majority of the people there were accustomed to having foreigners around, so no one really batted an eye at the two of them.  It was nice going to another country for a relaxing pleasure trip for once, coming out to visit his brother Sam and Sully while they did ‘work’ in Portugal, rather than trying to stay one step ahead of those who were chasing him and whatever treasure he was after.  It was definitely a _pleasant,_ slower change of pace.

 

“At least you’re not driving a jeep through it and wrecking the whole place,” Sam quipped with an elbow to his brother’s side.  “I mean, _how_ many times have you done that now?”

 

“It was just the _one_ time,” Nate retorted with a slight pout to his lips and a wrinkle to his brow.  “But there _have_ been _other_ incidents in marketplaces that didn’t involve vehicles,” he admitted with a light chuckle as he recalled those past times.  “Just lots of running.  And guns.  Can’t forget about the guns.”

 

“Right,” Sam said with a laugh and an affectionate slap to his younger brother’s shoulder.  “I’m glad you came to visit little brother,” he admitted while a smile drew across his lips.  “It was getting lonely with just me and Victor to keep each other company.”

 

“I’m surprised you haven’t sampled the _local cuisine_ yet,” Nate said with a cock of an eyebrow, this time being _his_ turn to dig an elbow to his brother’s ribs in implication.  “You know, someone to keep your bed warm at night?”

 

“Eh, I just haven’t found what I’m looking for yet,” Sam replied with a shrug of his shoulders.  “Besides, Victor’s been keeping me pretty busy with work, so it’s not like I’ve had a lot of time to search, you know?”  He spotted the place that was their intended destination; a small café/bar where they could sit down and relax and get caught up over the past few months since they had parted ways.  “Anyway, lemme buy you a beer, my treat,” Sam said as he motioned towards the café.  “They’ve got some good stuff here.”

 

“Okay, yeah, why not,” Nathan said with a nod of his head and a smile.  It was hard for him to get it through his head that he was on _vacation_ , and that it was all right for him to stop and relax for a moment or two.  He was so used to always being on the run, always being chased, and always functioning under adrenaline and pressure.  So it was definitely nice for a change to be able to slow down and just take things in.  He followed Sam towards the café, which had some outdoor tables scattered about in front of the building, but was suddenly stopped when he inadvertently ran into his brother’s back.  “Hey, at least _warn_ me when you’re going to stop walking,” Nathan complained as he rubbed at his nose, which had smacked right into the back of Sam’s neck.

 

“Is that…?” Sam finally got out as he flicked a finger towards one of the tables, his hazel eyes wide as if he had just seen a ghost.  And with who was sitting down at the table drinking a cup of tea, he pretty much _had_.

 

Nathan peered around Sam’s shoulder, sucking in a breath when he saw who Sam was talking about.  “Holy crap, is that _Nadine_?”  Nate asked in a hissed whisper, trying not to draw her attention to the two of them.  He hadn’t seen her since she had abandoned them _and_ Rafe on Avery’s ship, but it seemed like she had gotten out of there and was alive and well.  And judging by the somewhat formal cream pantsuit that she was wearing, she was probably there on business.  “What in the hell is _she_ doing here?”

 

Just as Sam shook his head and gave a lift of his shoulders, an accented voice called out, “I can hear you two, you know.  I’m not deaf.”

 

Nathan froze in place at the sound of the familiar voice, but turned his head to see where a set of light brown eyes was now staring him down.  He remembered how harsh and piercing Nadine’s stare was back when they were fighting against her, but this time there was something a little _softer_ in her expression.  It didn’t make his blood run quite as cold like it had in the past.  “H-Hey Nadine, long time no see, huh?”  Nathan called out with a stuttered voice and an awkward wave.  “Fancy running into you here.  It’s a small world.”

 

Nadine just sighed as she set her teacup back down onto the saucer sitting on the table.  “Why don’t you two come on over here and have a seat?”  A smirk quirked at her lips.  “I promise I won’t fight you this time.”

 

Sam laughed nervously at the proposition, remembering the last few times that he’d come face to face with Nadine, and they sure as hell weren’t _pleasant_ memories.  Despite her petite frame, she packed quite the punch, and Sam’s cheek throbbed when he remembered the kicks to the face that he took back then.  “You _promise_ , right?”  He said as he moved towards where Nadine was sitting, and then carefully pulled out the chair across from her in order to sit down.

 

“I promise,” Nadine replied with a small laugh.  She looked up towards Nate and gestured towards the other empty seat.  “So I guess the rumors I heard were true, that Nathan and Samuel Drake survived to live another day.  I’m not surprised, considering you two seem to have more lives than a cat does.”  She lifted her tea cup once again to take a sip from it, her eyes glancing over the rim to carefully look over her new tablemates. 

 

Nate chuckled as he sat down in the other chair.  The air around them felt a little strained and tense, and he’d be _lying_ if he wasn’t a little nervous to be around Nadine once again.  “Yeah well, you left us there in kind of a _predicament_ ,” he said with a slight huff of breath.  “Fortunately we managed to get out of there just before the whole cave collapsed onto us.  Rafe though, he wasn’t quite so lucky.”  Nate paused to glance up at Nadine.  “You _did_ know about Rafe, right?”

 

A sneer curled at Nadine’s lip when she heard the name, and she placed her cup back down on the saucer with a clatter.  “Rafe deserved what he got, the greedy bastard,” she spat out with narrowed eyes.  “If he’d listened to me, he might still be alive today.”

 

_Touchy subject_ , Nate thought as he watched Nadine’s neutral expression switch quickly to one of anger and annoyance.  “Weren’t you guys like, _together_ at some point?”  Nathan asked curiously.  “At least, it seemed like you were.”

 

Nadine snorted at the question, although her anger seemed to start fading as quickly as it had come on.  “I never knew that you were so interested in my love life,” she joked as she fiddled with the petite handle on her teacup.  “But if you must know, there was a point where we _were_ romantically involved.”  Nadine laughed softly as she recalled the memory.  “That is, until he decided to slap me in the face just because we disagreed with each other.  I punched him back of course, but that was pretty much the end of that.  It didn’t help that he had bribed my men to work with him over me.  Which is just as well, considering that he met his maker not too long after.  But it all worked out, since I got the treasure and he got what was coming to him.  Karma’s a bitch after all.”  A smile graced her features as she gently leaned back in her chair.

 

“No love lost there, huh?”  Sam asked as he absentmindedly moved a hand up to stroke at his chin.  _I probably shouldn’t tell her that he died pretty fast, she likely wants him to have suffered in his last moments._ A glint of light caught his eye, and he realized that it was coming from the diamond ring that adorned one of Nadine’s fingers.  One of the rocks was a pretty sizeable stone as well.  “Speaking of love, looks like you’ve got someone else in your life now?”  Sam inquired as he pointed out the very expensive looking ring on Nadine’s hand.

 

“You are very astute, Samuel,” Nadine said as she held out her hand in order to show off the jewelry.  “I met him not long after I got back to South Africa and was trying to salvage what was left of my company.”  She gave the two men a pointed stare before continuing to speak.  “We hit it off right away and as you can see, it’s pretty serious.  I picked out the ring and hell, I even paid for it, but it all works out since I got exactly what I wanted.”

 

_How come I’m not surprised_ , Nathan thought as he gave a little laugh of his own.  _Nadine would be the one to wear the pants in any relationship.  Even Rafe probably couldn’t handle her._   “Well I’m glad it sounds like things have been going well for you,” Nate said with a slightly awkward smile, still finding it weird to be just sitting around and chit chatting with someone who in the past had been actively trying to kill both him _and_ Sam.

 

Nadine was about to reply to Nate when the buzz of her phone sitting on the table distracted her.  She briefly glanced at the screen before lifting her teacup up one last time in order to drain the contents.  “Well, while it’s been nice catching up with you fellows, I’ve got some business to attend to,” she said as she moved to get up from her seat.  Nadine paused to dig into her pocketbook and tugged out a couple of what looked to be business cards.  She slapped them down onto the table and slid a card in front of both Nathan and Sam while a smile tugged at her lips.  “You two have natural potential though, so if either of you are looking to get into _security_ detail, get in touch with me.  I could use some men like you.”  With a wave of her hand, Nadine was off, quickly blending into the crowd of the marketplace.

 

“Okay, that was just _weird_ ,” Nathan said with an exhale of breath, finally feeling like he was able to _breathe_ now that Nadine had left the table.  “Did she just offer us a _job_?”

 

“She’s not so bad,” Sam said as he picked up the card that Nadine had left him, studying the Shoreline logo on it that was front and center in large, colorful font.  “And she obviously knows talent when she sees it.”

 

“She tried to _kill_ us,” Nathan reminded his brother as he glanced at his own copy of the business card still sitting on the table surface.

 

“Eh, that was when Rafe was around.  Now that he’s gone, I don’t think we have to worry so much about a paramilitary organization targeting us,” Sam explained as he tugged his wallet out so that he could slide the card into one of its pockets.  _Might need this sometime in case Victor and I are in a bind,_ he thought. It couldn’t hurt to have an addition to their contacts.  “Anyway, I still owe you that beer.”

 

“Make it _two_ ,” Nate said as he held up a hand to flick out two fingers.  “And a snack.  Something good and local.  And sweet.”

 

Sam grinned.  “Whatever you want, little brother,” he said as he signaled for a nearby waitress to come serve them.  “I’m just glad that you’re here.”


End file.
